When the Clock Strikes Thirteen
by teamJNPR
Summary: It's the witching hour in Crypton, a strange city that changes as the night grows. Miku is out on a walk, unable to sleep, when she's swept up into a magical gathering. A present of negitoro weirdness for the wonderful WolfySchnee.


**AN: Happy birthday to Wolfy! This idea is a bit of strange one,** **especially since I promised you something fluffy. It feels like something more suited to halloween, honestly. But, I hope you enjoy it nonetheless. After IdrewAcow's work with third person omniscient, I wanted to give it a try. It's only short, though.**

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When the Clock Strikes Thirteen

A young lady like Miku daren't walk the streets of Crypton at a time such as this. At least, that's what Miku tells herself before she opens the heavy doors of the Hatsune town house and steps out on to the cobblestones.

They're cold, Miku only clad in her silk slippers, but she continues to walk anyway. There's a charged feeling to the air tonight, one that only Miku can feel while her family laughs at her foolish notions. But she'll keep going, if only to find out where, and what, that feeling is coming from. She's only somewhat aware of the horrors that await around the city's shadowed corners, a dull understanding of the little she's skimmed over in the newspapers before her parents whip it away. They say a lady like Miku needs to focus on her studies, because what else is a lady good for other than pleasant company? But Miku knows she's destined for something different, even if it's only a small part of her. She's a simple girl in most aspects, but there's something that charms the more inquisitive eye.

Miku floats down the streets, not knowing her destination, not knowing if she'll find what she's not sure she's looking for in the first place. In the corner of her eyes lies a shadowy figure, but every time she turns to look at it, the figure disappears, as though it was never there to begin with. Goosebumps rise on her arms, and she shivers. Still, she does not turn back to run and hide in the safety of her large, insular home. Miku continues on, through the curving streets and narrow alleyways, past the shop fronts which only a small scattering contain what they say this deep into Crypton.

There are no other wanderers, despite how many times Miku glances from side to side. None show themselves on this night, even as the city is bathed in the light of the full moon. The remnants of snow, corralled to the side of the pavements and dusting the edges of the slate roofs, look almost as though they are sparkling. Miku's eyes never linger for long on one place now, however.

There begins a chanting of some kind, and it is though it permeates every part of Crypton. Miku places her hands on the wall of a building, and takes it away quickly, as though it were made of fire. She shakes her head, but the noise does not relent, whisperings though they are at the moment. But still, she presses on. There is no hiding from the call, and every step forward is one closer to her destiny.

The chant grows louder, and gains a rhythm, a beat, a melody. It could be called singing, in another world, but in this one it is too unearthly to be considered such a thing. Miku presses her hands to her ears, and stops for a fraction of a second before being propelled forwards, her feet moving as though someone invisible is pushing her legs from behind. She's guided in this way as she spirals further into the city, into streets she never knew existed before this time. In fact, she may be the only human who knows of this place, these streets that wind in ways not quite right when one thinks of it too much.

She rounds another corner, into the darkness. Trees cover the moonlit sky, and Miku is left bereft of its ethereal comfort. Further in she goes, and the buildings shrink away, leaving only small, dilapidated stone structures. Despite Crypton's industrial nature, a forest grows here where Miku walks, the dew from the grass soaking her feet through her slippers. The scent of something heavy is on the air, a charged, buzzing smell that seems alive. The chanting is strong now, and a clearing makes itself known. At the back of the clearing stands a stone folly, covered in moss and crumbling at the seams.

But what Miku's eyes are drawn to are the creatures who stand in a semicircle facing her, as if they were waiting. The chanting quietens, but their mouths are not moving. The creatures, although they look like people, like Miku, they are simply not. There is something "other" about them, something that threatens to claw away at their supposed normal appearance. Miku shivers again, opening her mouth, then closing it again as someone new steps forwards, coming through the semicircle even though the creatures have not moved.

Pink hair cascades down her shoulders, and her eyes are glowing a deep, cerulean blue. Miku's eyes widen as the woman spreads her arms in a welcoming gesture, the sheer fabric covering her arms glistening slightly.

'You have stumbled on to something human eyes should not be seeing,' the woman says. 'But, then again, you have been brought here by forces out of your control. The smell of magic is strong on you.' She moves closer to Miku, her feet not appearing to fully touch the ground. 'It suits a human such as yourself ill.' Her hand cups Miku's chin, and Miku audibly swallows.

'I don't know why I'm here,' Miku whispers. 'I simply awoke, and found myself walking. I couldn't speak, nor could I turn away.'

'Then perhaps I should welcome you properly. My name is Luka.' She steps back, closing her eyes as wings unfurl from her back, translucent but shimmering. 'I am one of the fae, as is everyone here. Come, dance with us, Miku.'

'How do you know my name?'

'A leader must know many things. Including that of her new subject.'

'New subject?' Miku blurts out, but the chanting has picked up once more, and she is swept up in Luka's arms as the faerie woman twirls her about, laughing all the while.

Stars scatter down from somewhere unknown, sparkling so brightly that Miku closes her eyes for a moment to shut out the glare. The fae carry on dancing nonetheless, but Luka holds tightly on to Miku. She knows that if she lets go for too long, Miku will be swept away by another. It is a gathering of many of the fae clan leaders tonight, and Miku is a powerful prize.

Miku's eyes are glittering with the stars, and as Luka lifts her up into the air with a languid beating of her wings, she holds on with a squeak.

'You will become so much more than you were previously destined,' Luka murmurs into her ear. 'Now that I have chosen you, our fates will be intertwined.'

'I am certain this is a dream of some kind,' Miku says. 'Is it strange some small part of me wishes it to be real?'

'Listen to it. Come with us as the witching hour ends, and you will become something no human ever could imagine.'

Surrounded by the unknown, held in the arms of someone she does not know, Miku nods. Luka smiles, and continues to dance as the beat becomes more frenzied. The voices grow louder, the chant coming to its peak, and a light shines like a beacon from the folly. Little does Miku know that she has become bound to a contract, one bathed in ancient magic that she does not yet understand. A word of the fae is binding when spoken like this, laden with promise, and Luka knows that this is true. She has guided Miku ever so carefully into this, and now Miku cannot escape.

But Miku continues to dance happily, unaware of her promise. She steps daintily on the air while Luka holds her. She is about to be swept away to the land of the fae, where normality is something Miku does not understand, and strangeness is incomprehensible. Yet magic inundates such a place, and Miku is ready for it, although she doesn't know that. Her soul is part of this energy, and even if she doesn't understand her new world, her soul just might.

The witching hour begins to come to a close, and the faerie gathering is disappearing into the folly. Soon, Miku and Luka are one of the last few left.

'Are you ready?' Luka asks.

Miku glances about in a moment of hesitation, but the contract is already complete. She nods, smiles, and Luka brings them both down to the ground.

'The land of the fae,' Miku breathes as they face the door to the folly, Luka gripping Miku's hand. 'Will I ever come back?' She says this last part almost to herself, so quiet is her voice.

'Maybe one day. But why would you ever want to come back here?'

'There is little reason for me to stay, but…'

'Then come. Come with me and we can forge our own fate.' Luka smiles down at her, for although her contract is binding, for although she has somewhat ulterior motives, she has watched this woman for a long time. She has grown to care for her in a way that none of the others have. She will make sure Miku is happy.

Still holding hands, the two step into the light, and Miku does not look back.


End file.
